Aboard Dignity (Lagoon 420) Blog

Our first event of the day was to sail a little further up the river to the point where we could see the dam that holds back the Gatun lake. We then turned to head back down the river towards a waypoint given in our guide where, nearby, there were supposed to be a couple of easy walks leading from a stone bridge. Annie helmed the boat down the river and round the bends. I forgot to mention she had a short spell of helming the previous day. Also forgotten from the previous log was our anchor getting wedged under a rock on our second stop. I had to dive down 30ft a couple of times. The first time to inspect the anchor. The second time to tie a line to it’s apex. Having tied the knot I tried planting my feet on the river bed and pulling it out. This was successful so the line was unnecessary.

Back to yesterday. We anchored near the given waypoint then hunted around for the small bridge. A little further down the river was the very creek I explored the previous day with the bats and the log that I thought was a crocodile. This had to be it. We scrambled up onto the bridge and started to explore. There were no easy trails here. What trails there were were overgrown. I think the trails that we saw were previous users of the guide book stomping around looking for the trails suggested in the guide. I swung my machete to do some clearing of the path but we never got far.

Back on the boat I had received clearer instructions from Sympatica where to find this creek with the pool and waterfall. Heading back to the last straight run before the sea we followed these new instructions and found an inlet matching the description. We anchored then Sam and I checked it out rather than take a laden dinghy with all of us up another dead end. This time we were lucky. We went back and after some deliberation we had lunch then all of us went in the dinghy to the pool with our soaps and shampoos. On the way up the creek Helen was convinced she saw another crocodile. We turned to look but could see nothing. In the end we think it may have been a bow wave from the dinghy slapping up against the bank of the creek.

The pool was quite small but very deep. I was curious as to the depth so I returned to Dignity to get our portable depth sounder. It measured the pool as being 34ft deep. The waterfall was big enough to stand under and get a massage.

We all washed and swam. Annie managed to get all the tangles out of her hair – we hardly recognised her afterwards.

Back on the boat we decided to stay there for the rest of the day and relax. At one point we were passed by a boat called Quartermoon. We’d seen them before on the river. This time we called out and let them know about the pool and waterfall. Later they showed up in their dinghy to explore. When they came out we chatted. We discovered that the guy had gone to the same school as I did back in Reading, UK. Small world.

Today is day 1 of our canal transit. We’ll be leaving here around 8am to get to Shelter Bay marina to possibly take on fuel. We also need to meet our agent there to pick up our lines and tires. Shelter Bay normally need advance warning for fuel requests and possibly advance payment so we may not get any. We have enough to get through the canal many times so no problems if we’re not successful. After our Shelter Bay rendezvous we’ll head out to the flats (an anchorage region near Colon) where we’ll await our pilot who will guide us through the canal before heading to the locks. There’s a small possibility we’ll pick up an internet connection out there. If we do we’ll start uploading the zillions of photos we have pending.

My understanding of timing through the canal is imprecise at best. When we were last in Shelter Bay my blog entry indicated the time ranges we’ll possibly be going through the locks and a link to the Panama Canal webcams. If you have the time and inclination you can watch out for us. If we get a better idea of when we’re going through we’ll put an update out on our blog if we can. I’ve never tried blogging while motoring so we may not be able to do so. We’ll be making position updates as we traverse the canal and will upload them when we can. The positions will show on http://www.winlink.org/dotnet/maps/PositionReportsDetail.aspx?callsign=KC2RIY

We set sail for Portobelo fairly early in the morning so we could make the most of the next stop. The wind was light so we motor-sailed round the corner. We could have sailed but it would have taken over twice as long and time was limited.

We went ashore soon after arrival. By consensus we skipped the fort on the north side and tied up at the dock to see the fort and town on the south side.

We spent a little while in the museum in the old customs house. Annie was desperate to see a monkey and we did indeed find one outside the museum up a tree. We spent a while watching it and at one point it jumped on Annie to try and get inside her backpack.

We explored the rest of the fortifications and the central church which houses the ‘Black Christ.’

We decided to eat lunch in town before buying provisions. We bumped into the couple who used to sail ‘Double Dutch’ (who we last met on the turtle tour in Grenada). They now have a new boat but I have unfortunately forgot the name. They were sitting at a table in a tiny restaurant with their family. We chatted for a while before going off to choose which restaurant we would eat at. We eventually ended up back at the same place.

After lunch we shopped including treating ourselves to ice cream on a stick.

Back on the boat we rested for a while. Sam and Annie went back into town to find the monkey. They came back having found it, fed it and being bitten by it thinking it was all worth the pain and effort. I think Annie now wants a sloth and a monkey for pets.

We left Portobelo at first light this morning and are currently sailing towards the Chagres river where we expect to spend two night before transiting the canal. If the winds stay as they are we should arrive around midday.

Yesterday was our last day in the San Blas together. Helen and I may get back some as we’ll arrive again if we keep on heading west. I’d made an offer a while back to send everyone who wants to up the mast for the view and this was our last chance to do this around small islands. In the morning I dug out the bosuns chair. The wooden seat was looking a little soft so I decided to send up Annie, Sam and John in weight order, lightest first. That meant Annie got the first ride. We used two lines for safety reasons. One attached to the chair and the backup line around the waist. We shared hand signals so Annie had control of the ascent and descent in case she ran into trouble or had enough. In the end she had no issues and made it to the top. from there she took a few pictures and stayed a while before descending. Up next was Sam. Much the same although with his longer arms he was better able to hang onto the shrouds (mast supports) to stabalize himself. John waited until midday for his turn so he could have better light for his pictures.

After Annie and Sam had been up we decided that we weren’t going to use the hookah again. I went snorkeling alone with my spear gun and caught a very decent sized lobster. I tried to find more but apart from one tiny one I could find none. Back on the boat I cooked it straight away as it was already dead – unsurprising having been shot through the head. I shared a little with John but scoffed most the kill myself.

Lunch was leftovers from the previous day after which John had his turn up the mast. After a hour or so rest Annie and Sam swam ashore to begin collecting firewood for an evenings bonfire. Later, John and I went out in the dinghy to collect some larger driftwood I’d seen on another beach. We picked it up and took it to Annie and Sam in the dinghy.

Back on the boat we had dinner then went ashore to light the fire. It was a perfect evening, the stars were out overhead and could be seen through the palm trees. The fire was welcoming, triggering our primal instincts to hang around and enjoy the warmth of the flames. Once the fire had died out, Annie, Sam and I snorkeled back to the boat in the dark. We’d brought our gear and two torches. Although one failed along the way we were able to enjoy the reef at night. For a while we turned off the torches and swam in the pitch dark seeing an impressive display of luminescent algae which surrounded each of us with twinkling lights.

No booze was consumed yesterday evening as we have a long sail today. We need to be sharp and to avoid seasickness. Alcohol doesn’t help with either of these.

We set sail shortly after 6am. The forecast had been for light and variable winds. Fortunately we’re seeing around 12-13 knots of wind. If this keeps up we’ll sail all the way. The kids are all fast asleep right now – just Helen and I sailing the boat. Seas are fairly calm.